[The Santuary] Sticks and Stones (Dust)

[Vanator]

Timestamp: 13th of Summer, 513 AV

The blocks of wood were about twelve inches tall and six inches wide, suitable targets, Vanator thought. He had layered a number of the stone blocks from the building supplies on top of each other to make a short wall, set up outside of the Sanctuary, several feet in front of the outer wall. Van placed half a dozen of the wooden block on top of the wall. That should do.

The Drykas had invited Dust to join him for several reasons. Firstly, it was his job. The Armsmaster was responsible for ensuring everyone living and working at the Sanctuary was skilled in its defense, especially after the Zith assault the past Fall. He knew the raven Kelvic had purchased a sling recently, and he wanted to coax her into working with it some more. She had shown an interest in daggers as well. Second, Dust had become about his closest friend outside of Kavala, and he enjoyed spending time with her.

So, Van had gone into town and purchased some bullets and a few spare slings to keep in the armory for the raven-girl. He had set up the ad hoc targets, and brought out some of the sling stones in a pouch and a couple wooden practice daggers from the armory. He also grabbed the wooden practice hand ax, for him to toss. The Dyrkas did not want to practice with his good cold steel ax and risk damaging it.

Upending a waterskin and gulping down a swallow of its cool contents, Van wiped a his mouth on his sleeve and waved to Dust as she appeared around the corner.

Armory Ledger50 sling bullets 5sm
2 hebrean slings 12sm

[Dust]

Dust heard Van before she saw him -- or at least, she presumed it was Van making the scraping noises. After all, she expected to find him out here! The Kelvic woman practically bounded around a building corner in the exuberant manner she tended to, following the sounds to find -- well, Vanator. And a bunch of blocks, stone and wood alike, all stacked up together in a tower. Or maybe just a wall... Dust waved back at Van and continued right on past him, walking around the assembly of building materials and giving it thoughtful scrutiny. "I would've made a tower!" she declared at him over its top, gesturing with a hand over her head as if implying her imagined tower would have been this high. Or just plain taller. "But it's pretty neat, anyway." Of course, Dust was thinking in terms of building for fun, not in the making of targets for practice. And they were here for a purpose. Dust walked back around to join her friend. She had her sling, tied around her waist where it wouldn't get in the way; she quickly untied it and held it up for the armsmaster's inspection. "I brought mine!"

[Vanator]

Vanator chuckled as Dust opined upon the ad hoc structure he had built, suggesting a tower would have been her choice. It was a fine thought, though, to take some of the material and just see what the Kelvic would create, almost like adult sized version of a child's building blocks. The Raven-girl's unique way of thinking, always colored with the mind of an avian, never failed to surprise the Drykas man.

"Well, next time, you can design the wall." He grinned. Moving to his side, Dust presented her weapon, a simple leather sling. Vanator nodded in approval. It seemed fitting for Dust, the simple hebrean design. But Van knew there was definitely a technique to using the weapon, one he himself had never attempted to try. He picked up a small leather bag on the ground next to him, and moved it to his other side, next to Dust. "Here are some bullets for you to use, whenever you want. They will be stored in the armory. When we get back, makes sure to get some to keep with you too, just in case you need them."

"Now, show me how you use that thing." The Drykas instructed, stepping back away from the woman a few steps. "Try to knock a block off of the wall."

[Dust]

"Okay!" She leaned down to pick up the bag Van indicated, pouring out three of the oblong lead bullets and examining them curiously. They were all the same -- same size, same shape, same weight -- which was a marked contrast with all the pebbles Dust remembered picking through before. Putting two back in the pouch, she held one up against the sky. "I've always just used rocks before. These're kinda neat!" Having scrutinized the ammunition to her heart's content, Dust turned her gaze to the target, and assessed the distance between her and it. She stepped back a little, then shuffled sideways until lined up as she wanted. She positioned the sling first, longer string looped around ring finger, shorter string gripped between thumb and first. Then she tucked the bullet in the palm of her left hand before looking down the range again. It had been a while since she'd last used a sling; the Kelvic wanted to be sure she had everything right. Right foot back, turned out, body angled oblique to the target. That felt familiar. Unweighted, the sling hung limply beside; Dust took a moment to twist her shoulders and torso forward and back, reminding herself of what it felt like to cast a slingstone. It wasn't just wrist or even arm, she remembered that; it took the whole body to do it. Okay! She was all warmed up now, and cast a quick grin towards the Drykas. Then Dust slipped the bullet into the sling's pocket, let it drop; she sighted on a target, the wooden block in the very middle of Van's wall; and brought her arm up and around in a large, forceful motion, releasing the sling at the top of the arc. The bullet whizzed right past the wall and its decorative blocks to crack against the greater wall behind. "Aww," Dust griped, looking disappointed -- but not really very disappointed at that. It was only the first try... and she leaned down to extricate another bullet from the pouch, not defeated yet.

[Vanator]

Vanator stepped back to give Dust room as she readied her sling. The Drykas thought it a bit strange to see the charming, mild-mannered Kelvic wielding a weapon, though he was certainly behind her effort to learn some means of defense. It was a requirement he had for all Sanctuary residents, as the Armsmaster, that everyone learn to use a weapon. But his raven friend had initiated her sling training on her own.

The chop-shorn blonde took her time getting the hold right before loading a stone. The sling was such a simple weapon, Van mused, little more than a strip of leather and a rock. But it must have been difficult to employ. A crossbow or regular bow had a stock or shaft to aim down. For a slinger, there was far greater coordination of eye and hand needed to hit a target.

The leather thong began to whirl as Dust built up momentum, and when she released, the bullet cracked loudly against the wall and ricocheted off to the side. Though she had missed the target, the volume of the impact and the puff of dust it broke loose from the wall testified to the lethality of the girl's weapon of choice. "You will get it, just hone in on the block." He encouraged his friend. Though Van had never used a sling, all missile weapons worked on the same principle, small adjustments until your projectile finds the target.

While Dust reloaded, Vanator took up the wooden hand ax. He needed practice too. Gripping the practice weapon near the end of the haft, he lifted it, waving it back and forth to get a feel for its weight and balance. His eyes fixed upon the wooden block at the opposite end of the wall from Dust's. Then he raised the ax, chambered it back over his head, and flung it forward. The weapon tumbled towards the block on the wall, but fell short, the back side hitting just below and to the right of the target. He had not followed through with the throw, he knew, causing the ax to tumble more than it should.

"Well, that wasn't pretty!" He laughed and stepped back to let Dust have another shot.

[Dust]

oocA reply, you have it at last... Van took his turn next, his actions first felt more than seen as Dust fetched her next missile. She straightened as he finished testing the weapon and began focusing on his chosen target. She watched intently as it streaked through the air towards the block on the far end -- also to miss, striking bluntly against the wall and landing on the earth in a small cloud of brownish dust. "Nope!" the Kelvic concurred, shaking her head in exaggerated dismay. "I guess everybody needs practice, not just me!" She smiled at Van as she said it, an appreciation for their common struggle rather than a cut at anyone's skill. "What do you do with those to make sure they hit on the edge?" Dust mused aloud even as she rearmed her own weapon; slingstones had the distinct advantage of having no wrong sides to impact on! She sighted on the center block again, narrowing her eyes and pursing her lips as she focused intently on it. She would hit it this time, she would. Feeling the weight of the pellet suspended from her hand, Dust whipped the sling up and around again, willing the pellet to strike the target as she released it. When her eyes snapped back to the wall, she found no gap in the row of targets balanced atop. The sound of the second pellet also striking the courtyard perimeter only added emphasis to their continued presence. But... the one she'd been aiming for now sat askew, and wobbled in its new place; apparently she had at least clipped it! That counted as a success in Dust's book, and she clapped her hands happily. "Look! I got it! Kinda..."

[Vanator]

Vanator was not surprised by his failed throw. The hand ax was a secondary weapon to him at best, and as a thrown weapon he had barely attempted. "Yes, I need a lot of practice!" He laughed at himself as he retrieved the wooden ax, brushing off the dust on his pants. Returning to the 'firing line' Van watched Dust take her next shot before answering her question. The Kelvic launched another bullet, Vanator watching as the projectile zoomed towards the target, nicking the block of wood and nudging it out of place. He clapped and smiled at Dust. "You definitely got it! If that was the side of my head that stone glanced off of, I would certainly call it a hit!" The Drykas was beginning to gain some respect for the simple desert weapon, the missile small, lightening fast and unseen as it streaked to its target.

Hefting the practice ax in his hand, Van readied to take is turn. "The trick is not to flip the butt and cause it to tumble too much in flight. So, not only do you have to get the ax to hit the target, but you have to get the sharp side as the part that makes contact." The wooden weapon was held close to the end of the haft again, flexing back and forth as Van gauged the distance again, adjusting his aim to make up for the mistakes of his last throw.

Taking more time on this attempt, the Drykas lowered his throwing arm, then raised it over his head. Then he began his throw, and when his arm was out straight, he release his grip. The ax turned four times, too many, and crashed into the wooden block, knocking it off the wall. "Well, I still don't call that a hit. I want it to stick." He envisioned a Zith head with his hand ax jutting from its skull. Van jogged behind the short makeshift wall and retrieved the ax and wood, setting the block back on the wall. Returning to Dust's side, he nodded and grinned. "Your turn. Nail it!"

[Dust]

If that was the side of my head... Dust tilted her head in the wake of Van's statement, considering. She hadn't thought about it quite that way before -- slings were weapons, yes, and she had gone hunting with them before... or tried... but never quite made the connection to hitting a person in the head. She did now -- and all but shrugged it off. "That would hurt!" the Kelvic agreed, considering the skewed block atop the wall. She turned as he continued speaking, watching how he held the axe in hand. He raised it and launched it forward, the thrown weapon striking its target with a heavy thunk; both crashed over the other side of the little wall. "But that would've hurt your head too," Dust pointed out -- a bit of a grin implying that your head was deliberate usage. As opposed to the general case of 'someone's head', or even 'the bad guy's head'. The armsmaster cued Dust to take another turn, and she slipped another pellet from the pouch, gamely taking position before the targets once more. "I will!" Dust asserted; she really would. She rubbed her hands together, then set about arranging the pellet and sling just so. Not because she needed to be so meticulous, but because she was determined to get it right. Then she took up firing stance again, oblique to the target, squinted at her chosen block, and swung the sling up and over... maybe a little too hard, in her determination to score a hit. The stone zinged forward -- and right over the top of the block, once again colliding with the outer wall beyond. "Hmph." Dust scowled at the target wall, wrinkling her nose in exaggerated frustration. She stalked forward, reached up a hand, and jabbed one finger into the offending block -- which, under that attack, proceeded to topple right over the back of the wall and clatter to the ground. "There!" the Kelvic asserted, turning and casting a rueful grin at Van.

[Vanator]

The implement Vanator was working with was simpler than the weapon the Kelvic employed. It was certainly easier to chuck a big tool at something and hit it. Dust was right, even if not caught on the sharpened edge, getting hit by a flung hand ax would hurt. He did catch Dust's particular wording in her comment. The Drykas sometimes had a hard time discerning between the blond raven's naivete and her subtle humor. Either way, he gave her an agreeing smile. But Vanator did not want to simply hurt an opponent. He had to deliver debilitating blows when it came down to survival.

Careful attention was then given to his sling-wielding friend. Great preparation was made, and the girl brought the sling to a whirling twirl once again. Her body seemed to drive the spinning leather, a bit of a shimmy in her torso as she swing it around. Then Dust released her bullet, and again, this time with alarming speed and force, the projectile skimmed past the target to slam against the Sanctuary's wall, kicking up another tiny puff of dust and pulverized stone before ricocheting away. Van saw the twist in Dust's countenance, her approach to the offending block of wood. Then he erupted in laughter as she flicked over the block and shot him a wry grin. "Sometimes, the direct approach is the most effective!" He offered in obvious approval.

His turn had come again, and once Dust was safely at his side, the Denusk raised the hand ax again. His grip was firm but not tight on the haft, low but not over the butt. He took several practice swings before raising it up over is head and bringing it down quickly, releasing when almost level with the block of wood. Again, the ax tumbled twice, heading straight for the target. The ax struck the wood and both weapon and block disappeared behind the small wall. Looking over at Dust with a shrug, Vanator walked around between the makeshift wall and the larger one. He ducked down, out of the Kelvic's sight for a tick, before raising back up. Lifting his arm, Vanator held the ax by the handle, the blade head still stuck in the wooden block in the top angle. His smile beamed at his companion.

"Now...that would hurt!"

[Dust]

Van took another turn at hitting the blocks on the wall -- but first tested and practiced the swinging motion. Canting her head, Dust studied the way he held the axe, the motion of arm and wrist -- this was, after all, going on right over there to the side; she had no reason to not observe. Even if she could plainly tell that the actions involved in throwing an axe had exactly nothing to do with her own sling use. Axes as a weapon didn't interest her: the raven couldn't very well carry one. Granted, the raven couldn't carry lots of things she had... but the sling was nice, because there was nothing to it and she could take it along if she wanted to go somewhere faster than walking. Plus, she already knew it was fun to use... particularly when she actually scored a hit. So Dust kept on with it. At last, Vanator launched his weapon towards the target blocks, another thunk resounding through the courtyard when it struck home. But had it hit with the handle or the blade? Even its wielder didn't seem to know, as he turned a shrug towards her. Dust grinned at him and echoed the shrug, then padded over to the front of the wall as he ducked down behind, leaning up to try and see down the other side. She couldn't see anything, of course, until Van held up the axe -- and the block with it, wedged on the blade's edge. "Oh, nice!" the Kelvic exclaimed, applauding happily. "It would! And it'd be messy," she added, reflecting briefly on hunts she'd observed in the past, where deep injuries bled freely. Messy may or may not be a good thing in this case... It didn't matter, anyway. Van's success made it her turn now. For the moment, there were two fewer blocks on the wall, and Dust still wanted to actually hit one with a slingstone. And knock it off. The way this was supposed to work. She made her way back to the imagined line, where the pouch of pellets lay waiting. Taking up another one, she held it up against the sky -- not that this lead ovoid looked any different from the first ones she'd examined. Hopefully that at least proved it wasn't defective... It also passed the time while Van came back around the wall to join her. She cast him a brief smile, then squinted at the wall and selected a new target, just to the right of her previous one. Dust spent a moment reflecting on her failures so far. The first had gone high; the second had the right level, but was off to one side; the third... well, she'd maybe been a little too enthusiastic with the slinging, there. But she didn't know how to fix anything but the last, really; she'd been sure she was aiming right at the blocks every time. This time too, as she focused on her chosen target, lined her body up on it, concentrated really hard on the pellet hitting it with a crash to equal Van's axe. Lead on wood, instead of lead on stone... she could see it, she could hear it... Almost without thinking about it, Dust angled her torso, stretched out her arm. She couldn't remember quite when she'd put the pellet in the sling, and didn't think about its presence now, didn't think about the weight hanging from her hand. She just envisioned stone and target, stone hitting target. Up, forward, release, fly -- -- and another loud crack resounded, simultaneous with her targeted block tipping over the back of the wall. Dust quite literally jumped up and down, clapping her hands excitedly. "Look, Van! I did it!"